Marriott International has targeted Birmingham as part of its strategy to significantly expand its Courtyard by Marriott hotel brand across the UK and Ireland.

There are currently 12 Courtyard hotels but the marque, which is primarily aimed at the business traveller looking for moderately priced high quality rooms, is set to grow by a further 40 or 50 hotels in the next five to ten years.

Timothy Walton, vice president for hotel development, said: "Birmingham is one of 20 locations we have initially identified in the UK because it fits with the Courtyard policy of targeting city centre or airport locations where there are high levels of business activity.

"Our plans are to buy sites and work in Birmingham in conjunction with local investors building hotels in either stand-alone locations or on mixed-use developments.

"However, we will not be long-term owners, selling on the hotels to third-party investors once we have a hotel management or franchise contract in place.

"With this strategy in mind we are very keen to strike up relationships with Birmingham's business community and willing, where it makes strategic sense, to selectively use company capital to bring a deal to fruition."

Courtyard is Marriott's largest brand and the world's 13th largest hotel chain with nearly 700 hotels in 24 countries. A new design, which is launching this summer in Paris, will be replicated in all the new Courtyard hotels throughout the UK and Ireland.

Meanwhile Leominsterbased Forbes Furniture, a division of the international Snap-Drape Group, has scored a major success with its lightweight Alu-Lite conference and banqueting tables.

It has won a deal with the Rome Marriott which will open the largest convention hotel in Europe at the end of July.

It will have the capacity to seat 7,000 people for a banquet using 1,740 Forbes tables - enough to stretch the length of London's Oxford Street.